Dennis Vegas was born on Good Friday April 11th, 1952, in New York City.
He was the first child of Daniel and Justina Vegas, two people who loved family, God, sports, and dancing, not necessarily in that order. Dennis has a younger sister named Laura and a brother named Kevin.
He was an outspoken and rambunctious child, getting reprimanded and disciplined because of his mouth and desire to lead. His father loved sports and passed that passion down to Dennis, who played organized baseball, football and even boxed for a bit. Today, Dennis is fanatical about his Yankees, Cowboys and over the last 10 years the boys from Alabama (he loves winners) as it is built into his DNA.
Dennis was the first grandchild and received lots of attention from his numerous aunts and uncles, but it was his grandmother that he truly idolized. She taught him about being Puerto Rican in America and how important it was to assimilate. They did everything together and because of her insomnia, allowed him to stay up till the wee hours of the morning watching TV. That means he was entertained by the likes of James Cagney, Red Skelton, Lucille Ball, Humphrey Bogart and John Wayne on a black and white TV. As a result, he can tell stories about the evolution of television. Talk about evolution, he used a rotary phone, saw the Beatles on Ed Sullivan, witnessed the development of the internet, and watched every single Superbowl. In other words, he has been around a lot of major changes over the last 70 years.
His parents were gregarious people and loved entertaining. In fact, it was rare not to have 15 to 25 people at his home every weekend. This led to close family ties, huge family debates, some wild Xmas parties, and his love for children, as there were always a large number around. It didn’t matter what ethnicity or age; you were welcome. It is part of the reason so many believe he easily interfaces with people from all cultures and countries. His affinity for people has certainly been a factor in his ability to work and build friendships around the world.
D as many people call him, was the first in his family to graduate from college and secure a master’s degree. He was also a dad at 19, completed college in 3 years and had his master’s degree by 24. He doesn’t recommend trying to be a husband, student, father, and provider at that age. If you want to see him smile with pride, just ask him about John, Stephanie, Michael, and his grandchildren. As they say in New York – forgetabout it! He takes great pride in the success of his family and what they have been able to accomplish.
Over his career he’s had many roles, from Executive Director of a halfway house to Chief Marketing Office of a Fortune 7 company. However, it is the people and relationships along the way that have shaped him and what he treasures most. It’s that time with friends and family that bring him great joy. One of the things that doesn’t bring him joy is chores or small projects, so don’t bring them up. He nearly decapitated himself installing a fan, set a house on fire fixing a light switch and nearly killed a small dog applying a toxic chemical to prevent ticks, when he was supposed to add one cup to a gallon of water.
In essence, Dennis has had a great life and lots of credit goes to the women in his life, especially Nikki who has been by his side for nearly 50 years.
He acknowledges, he was blessed and still is because of her love.
We hope you can join us on his 70th birthday and learn more about Dennis.
As we all know life is precious and tomorrow is promised to no one. As Dennis learned and believes, it’s imperative to Live the Dash. That is the time between your birth and your death when viewing a gravestone.
Let’s make it a memorable time.